Oddly competitive, he comes by it naturally

Last weekend, i tried to play Bingo with Holden. We agreed on the rules and he won the first game. Ahh, but the second game was all me and therein lies the problem. He is totally my kid. He wants to win all the time and he wants me to lose. He told me as much. Hmmm.

I did the “teachable moment” thing and told him that I wouldn’t play with him if he wasn’t going to follow the rules. And we’ll try again another time. Afterward at dinner, he explained further, “I want to win every time and I want everyone else to lose every time.” And his father echoed, “people might not want to play with you then.” I don’t remember how the conversation wound up… probably something about Holden dominating all the world and then laughing maniacally.

But I totally feel you kid. I am not a sporty or competitive woman in conventional ways, but when it comes to trivia or game shows, I cannot hold my tongue. I MUST DOMINATE. Or at least answer first every single time. If I am not answering first, I must be trying very hard to convince you that I’m a nice person and not obsessed with games.

I must blurt out as many answers as I can think of on Family Feud the second the question is read. I wanted to be on that show So Bad when I was little.

I love Trivial Pursuit and always answer even when (or Especially When) I have no clue.

But for some odd reason, Jeopardy makes me take pause and answer in my head to see if I’m right. Maybe it makes me feel like a dummy. It’s like that part of my brain where I always sing along the words to songs but I turn toward the window if I’m not super sure.

So Holden, you come by it naturally. Luckily, you’re a friendly enough kid that I am sure you will learn to temper your lust for absolute domination in all games because you like to make other people happy. Good luck with that! Then again, he is only three and a half. So, what’s my excuse?

— Do you have any fond memories of game shows to share? The Parent Bloggers and Oliebollen.com are having a Blog Blast to celebrate the game-showriffic “Arm Chair Holiday Shopping Sweep” game happening Nov 28th to Dec 2nd.